The Surgeon and Adjuvant Therapy for Stage II Colon Cancer

Excerpt

One of the more controversial issues in oncology is the role of postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy for stage II colon cancer. There are approximately 26,000 patients who are diagnosed with stage II colon cancer each year. The source of this controversy is the relatively high survival rates following surgical resection. Overall survival rate is 80% for stage II colon cancer, and it is difficult to demonstrate a clinical benefit with postoperative adjuvant therapy when the risk of recurrence is relatively low. When the risk of recurrence is low, a great number of patients have to be treated in order to achieve a small statistical benefit. Surgeons are aware of the favorable results of operative therapy for stage II colon cancer and recommending postoperative adjuvant therapy to patients can be confusing. …